Excerpted by EMRAH GÜLER:

(the original also presents the Zumbara Time Bank in Istanbul, of which I am an adviser)

“Turkey’s very own Gezi Protests, are defining the new decade. On the purest and most simple level, these civil uprisings and mass gatherings are revitalizing forgotten communities, creating new ones, and reclaiming public spaces as, well, public spaces.

“Community is nearly impossible in a highly monetized society like our own,” says Charles Eisenstein, the popular speaker, teacher, and the author of “Sacred Economics: Money, Gift & Society in the Age of Transition,” in one of his essays. “That is because community is woven from gifts, which is ultimately why poor people often have stronger communities than rich people.” In his book, and many of his essays, Eisenstein portrays a picture of transformation from a financial system to a gift economy, “better reflecting our emerging sense of interrelatedness.” Many alternatives to today’s market-based, monetized economy have been emerging next to these very markets. Gift economy, sharing economy, crowdfunding, collaborative consumption, and mesh economy are some of these systems gaining more followers each day. Turkey has been home to some innovative organizations and communities, practicing and advocating these alternative economies. E?ya Kütüphanesi, Library of Stuff, is one of them. Started in late 2012 by two young entrepreneurs, after taking the first place in the Startup Weekend Istanbul competition, Library of Stuff is a sharing platform that works through their website, esyakutuphanesi.com, and social media.

The Library of Stuff lets you lend and borrow. Its founders, Aysu Erdo?du and Ay?e Gökçe Bor are both graduates of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University, both were introduced to social entrepreneurship through their graduate studies, and both are willing to use entrepreneurship for social benefit. The Library of Stuff matches lenders and borrowers, location being the most important criteria at the moment. “What we are trying to achieve with the Library of Stuff is to revive the sense of sharing and solidarity seen in the old neighborhoods through using the internet,” said Erdo?du. “We try to facilitate borrowing and lending through our website. You can become a member, lend your stuff or you can check who has the item you need, so that you can borrow.”

“There are altogether around 200 listings on our website,” said Bor. “The most lent items are books, sports equipment and electronics. The most wanted items are bicycles and cameras.” Any unusual items? “An online survey we had held revealed that there are some willing to lend a concrete breaker, a welding machine, even a boat,” answered Bor. While the Library of Stuff was working the sharing ethos before the Gezi protests, “the spirit of Gezi was a dream for everyone who was part of the sharing economy,” said Erdo?du. “Gezi helped awaken in many of us a sense of sharing and solidarity. It might be the best thing coming out of the protests and the following period.” The exchange markets held in parks, forums and elsewhere regularly in the last month, perhaps, are a testament to that.

An online survey asking 250 users why they signed up to Library of Stuff revealed three major reasons; to help reduce the use of natural resources, to help others, and for displaying a stance against consumption culture.”